Steven Woolfe

Nigel Farage met Michel Barnier on Monday and is now calling, inexplicably, for a second EU referendum. He wants to rerun the whole thing. Well, I too have just got back from Brussels and no doubt Barnier said the same things to me and my three colleagues as he did to Nigel. That being the case, I think Nigel has lost the plot. I met Barnier on Wednesday along with Digby Jones, John Longworth and John Mills, all experienced and talented businesspeople with a deep understanding of the issues. We had a long discussion with Barnier, put our case for the EU accepting Brexit gracefully and acting with positivity in the up-coming trade negotiations. We all want the same thing: a good deal for both the EU and the UK.

Six years ago, I joined Ukip. Since then, I have campaigned with all my energy, time and determination to champion the party's core beliefs and values. I have been proud to stand in local, general, PCC and London assembly elections - and of course to be elected as a North West MEP. I have been proud to be a part of the team led by Nigel Farage, one of Britain's greatest ever politicians. He brought me into the party and helped us win the referendum - a moment I will always treasure. Without Nigel, the donors, the team members and the activists, the UK would not be free today. It was because of the support from party members that I put my name forward to lead the party in the Summer, and again two weeks ago following Diane's resignation.

I have described David Cameron's posturing on immigration today as vacuous and cynical, for that is exactly what it is. Cynical because once again he seems determined to fool the British people into believing that we can seriously have our own immigration policy whilst remaining inside the EU. We can't. Vacuous because his policy solution seems to consist of tinkering around the edges of the problem instead of dealing with it head on. Under his government, net migration levels per annum remain in the hundreds of thousands, with citizens from twenty-seven other nations allowed to come and go as they please. What Britain really needs is a tough, solid, Australian-style immigration system. One which is firm but fair and that can control numbers.